Government needs to go back to school on education - Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba

Under the NDP, families are left paying more and getting less for education: Ewasko

September 10, 2015

Dismal test marks, a reliance on food banks in record numbers and a gloomy economic future with an ever-increasing debt burden on top of their student loans – this is the reality facing Manitoba students this fall.

As the tax burden for Manitoba families rises, the NDP continues to fail our students, leaving them to struggle and fall further behind in international rankings in literacy, math and science.

“Students and parents want to be excited about the future. It’s supposed to be a time of hope. A quality education fostering growth and opportunity is the backbone of hope,” said PC education critic Wayne Ewasko. “The NDP is draining that hope by measuring success as money spent, not results achieved.”

Spending on education has more than doubled under the NDP, yet our students’ test results steadily decline and we remain last in the country in several key areas. Other recent indicators paint a bleak picture facing students and parents:

Last week a Conference Board of Canada national report card on innovation put Manitoba at the bottom of the pack with a “D” – above only two provinces. Productivity is linked directly to innovation which is directly linked to education.

Last week a CIBC survey found that two-thirds of Canadian parents are feeling the financial impact of having to support their adult children, and the leading driver of that is having kids at school. In Manitoba this is exacerbated by increased costs for school supplies and other expenses associated with PST hikes.

“If we learn anything from NDP history, it’s that when spending’s out of control, tax increases can’t be far behind,” added Ewasko. “We teach our kids at home and at school to live within their means and get value for money. Why can’t the pay-more, get-less government learn this basic lesson?”

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